Car Seat for 5 year old

NicoleWI · October 2013

Due to an accident I have to replace 4.5 year old DD's Britax Advocate. I was just thinking of getting the same thing, but then I realized that she may be ready for a "bigger" seat soon. What is your 5 yo in? She's 65th percentile for height and 35th for weight. Should I get a harness to booster combo like the Britax Pinnacle???

ss+el · October 2013

DS is in harness boosters - a Graco Argos in my car (primary/road trip vehicle) and a Graco Nautilus in DH's. The Argos is crash-tested at higher speeds than the Nautilus, otherwise they are almost identical.

He will be 5 next week, is 43" tall and 40lbs. Should be able to harness him for at least another year. This one is easy to height adjust too - just pull up and the headrest and shoulder straps adjust all at once.

Angela814 · October 2013

Is that the newer version of the Frontier? I know the Frontier gets good ratings for having a good booster fit later. If insurance is covering it, that's the one I would pick (the Pinnacle). Otherwise at 65% for height, the cheaper model would probably be fine too. DC will probably want to transition to a backless booster by 8-9 years anyway.

You also might want to look into the Recaro ProSport. It's another harness to booster seat. We have 2 Recaro HBBs and really like them.

If you can, I'd also see if you can check the booster fit before you buy the seat. You want the belt across the hips/thighs, not digging into the stomach. The shoulder belt should fit across the middle of the shoulder. Not every booster seat fits every child well, so it's good to know if it will fit in the future when you decide to use it in booster mode.

JaneSaintClair · October 2013

We have two Frontiers and really like them. The Pinnacle looks like a good seat too, but I did notice when we looked at it in the store that it's very heavy. Might be a consideration when using it as a booster later.

DTNZ4Ever · October 2013

We have the Graco 3 in 1. We are still using the 5 point harness but then can move to a high backed booster then just a booster. I liked that we could use it for a number of year. DS is also tall and it goes up to 65lbs.